Sony EX645 review:

Sony EX645

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The GoodThe relatively affordable Sony EX645 offers deep-enough black levels for the money and commendable color saturation. The design is attractive and the menu system is easy to use.

The BadWe detected a couple of uniformity issues, black areas can look blue under lights, and shadow detail isn't up there with the better TVs. The SEN portion of the Smart TV interface is so slow that it's kind of a waste.

The Bottom LineSony has upgraded its EX645 series TV with onboard wireless providing even better value given its predecessor's already solid picture quality.

CNET Editors' Rating

Review Sections

When it comes to buying a TV, no matter how attractive the shiny flagship models may be, it usually makes the most sense to buy the midrange products. While you'd naturally assume that the more advanced models have better picture quality, this isn't always the case. Sometimes you're just paying for more features and a worse picture.

If you're considering a Sony LED TV and the excellent KDL-HX850 is too rich for your blood, your choice comes down to the KDL-HX750 or the KDL-EX645. After comparing the two directly, I'd say it's a pretty easy decision. The EX645 wins because its picture is actually better than that of the more expensive HX750. Despite its spot as Sony's least expensive LED TV, the EX640/EX645 offers a very tidy picture for the money, with better blacks than the HX750 and the Samsung UNES6500, and well-saturated colors. Design is a high point, unusual for a midrange model, with a nicely textured finish. The only significant feature it misses is 3D, which should actually please some people.

While the Vizio M3D0KD is better in nearly every way, if you're looking for a TV by one of the "big four" TV makers, the Sony EX645 is a good buy.

Editors' note: The following review is based on my hands on-evaluation of the Sony KDL-46EX640. According to Sony as the only differences between the 640 and 645 models are that the EX645 has onboard wireless and a selection of larger screen sizes.

Series information: I performed a hands-on evaluation of the 46-inch KDL-46EX640, but this review applies to all of the screen sizes in the EX645 series. All sizes below have identical specs to the KDL-46EX640 and according to the manufacturer should provide very similar picture quality.

Design
Sony hasn't done anything drastic in the design department in 2012, and as a result, the EX645 series is none too different from last year's EX series. That is, until you get closer: the bezel is metallic and features a stippled finish not unlike a men's electric razor, and it actually looks quite classy. The stand is the standard black rectangle and features a swiveling base.

The remote control is a close-to-bog-standard model and now comes with a SEN (Sony Entertainment Network) button above the direction pad and a home button below. The menu system is different from the higher-end models' in that it's a simple white-on-transparent-black affair, while the other TVs feature the more sophisticated Sony XMB (cross media bar). I actually liked the simpler version better.

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The remote control is simple yet powerful.
Sarah Tew/CNET

Key TV features

Display technology

LCD

LED backlight

Edge-lit

Screen finish

Matte

Remote

Standard

Smart TV

Yes

Internet connection

Wi-fi

3D technology

No

3D glasses included

N/A

Refresh rate(s)

120Hz

Dejudder (smooth) processing

Yes

DLNA-compliant

Photo/Music/Video

USB

Photo/Music/Video

Features
Earlier in 2012 I was quite excited to receive the new Sony HX750: hey, it was the second-best TV in the range at the time, so it should've been good, right? My corresponding disappointment with that TV's performance was, I believe, silently shared by some within the company itself. The Sony engineers I met with later explained that the 750 series should have been an "EX" in designation but was bumped up to HX, as it had 3D.

So, even given the significant price difference between the two, the features of the EX645 are still quite decent. This is an edge-lit LED TV that lacks local dimming, but does come with Sony's MotionFlow XR 240 engine. While that number may lead you to believe this is a 240Hz TV, the native panel refresh rate is actually 120Hz.

As I mentioned, the EX645 misses out on 3D playback, but do you really care?

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The Sony Entertainment Network is an optional Smart TV interface that provides access to music and video.
Sarah Tew/CNET

Smart TV: The XMB interface is only offered on high-end TVs this year, but I didn't miss it because the simpler menus of the EX645 are even easier to use. The most-used apps are still within easy reach on the Menu page, and don't require booting into a new interface. From here you can access the big three: Amazon Instant, Hulu, and Netflix (Sony doesn't support Vudu). Of course, there is also the SEN (Sony Entertainment Network), should you also want access to the company's extensive movie and music offerings. Unfortunately we found that opening it was a very sluggish process -- the SEN interface took up to a minute to load.

The menu is simple but provides easy access to Netflix and Hulu.
Sarah Tew/CNET

Picture settings: For a midrange television the EX645 offers a good range of picture settings, even if the separate Scene modes are a bit buried in the menus. Unusually I found that the often-excellent Cinema scene mode wasn't as flexible as General, and hid access to the grayscale adjustments necessary for a good calibration.

Connectivity: For a TV under $1,000, the Sony actually offers a decent number of connections, with four HDMI inputs, two composite ports, a single component, and two USB inputs. Internet connectivity is provided with onboard wi-fi and Ethernet.